Feliz Dia de los Muertos

This year instead of going to the local Mexican restaurant, we celebrated Dia de los Muertos at home, combined with Halloween. Without the traditional Mexican music, pan de muertos and the waiters with their faces painted, it was not the same. But the margaritas and tacos tasted just as good! 

I didn't grow up with neither Halloween nor Dia de los Muertos, so in the beginning it felt strange to celebrate the dead and eat candy in the form of skulls and skeletons, but over the years I learned to appreciate and even love it.

At the end of the day, both Halloween and Dia de los Muertos, go back to an ancient, Celtic celebration, Samhain or (how it was later called) All Hallows Eve. Already thousands of years ago, people celebrated their dead. But most of all, I think it's a celebration of life. Honor the people who passed away and their lives. And celebrate, have fun, party... Carpe Diem!

Mexican food by KUA Mexican Kitchen restaurant: 
http://tarasdolcevita.blogspot.com/2014/09/kua-mexican-kitchen-hague-netherlands.html

Mr Skeleton cakes and macarons by De Bijenkorf:
https://www.debijenkorf.nl/

Chocolate pumpkins by Lanwehr GmbH, Confiserie:
https://www.lanwehr.eu/

Spring in London?

A couple of weeks ago I was in London for the weekend, a long weekend to be precise. Strangely enough it had been 6 years since my last time in the English capital. I love London and I live pretty close by. Maybe it's the English weather that kept me from coming back sooner... who knows?

This time around it was spring... or so it seemed. It snowed practically the whole time. That didn't keep me from visiting all my favourite places though: Covent Garden, Notting Hill, Belgravia, Mayfair and more.

Me and my friend Nadine went shopping at Harrod's (nice and warm), in Old and New Bond Street (beautiful shops, but sooo cold), the Burlington Arcade (a great tip from the concierge at the Westbury Mayfair Hotel), Borough Market (great mulled wine) and as I mentioned before, the inevitable Covent Garden.

But what's a city break without food and drinks? Exactly! So we also went to London's finest bars and restaurants: Sushisamba, Santini, Carluccio's, the Barluchi, the Polo Bar and Lima Floral.

And I finally made it to uber cool restaurant Sketch, which had been on my wish list for a long time. For those who don't know Sketch, it's the pink restaurant that you see popping up on your Instagram timeline all the time! Another gem is The Kensington Wine Rooms, 127-129 Kensington Church Street.

I stayed in a couple of different hotels, which gave me the opportunity to get to know various neighbourhoods: The Goring in Belgravia and the Westbury Mayfair in Mayfair. It's practically impossible to compare these hotels, since they're so different. If you like modern luxury in the heart of the city centre (and like to stay close to all the shops), go for the Westbury Mayfair.

If you like old school luxury and a (very) personal touch, the Goring is your best option. The Goring hotel also has a huge garden... perfect in spring or summer. Oh and I absolutely love their bar and lounge, where Afternoon Tea is served. Can't wait to go back one day!

Stay tuned for more articles about London, coming up soon!

Photos of me taken by my friend Nadine.
Photos 2-8 taken at The Goring.
Photo 20 (breakfast) taken at the Westbury Mayfair.

For more information, please visit:
The Goring hotel https://www.thegoring.com
The Westbury Mayfair http://www.westburymayfair.com

My previous articles about London:
https://tarasdolcevita.blogspot.nl/2012/10/nobu-berkeley-st-london.html
https://tarasdolcevita.blogspot.nl/2012/09/a-foggy-day-in-london-town.html

Seven year itch?

Seven year itch? Not for me and my blog! Today I'm celebrating the seven year anniversary of Tara's Dolce Vita and I can't believe how far I've come... A big thank you to my loved ones (you know who you are!) and of course to all of you for following and supporting me! Cheers, cin cin, santé, salud, proost.... to many more years to come.

Photos taken at Encore by Simonis:
http://encore-bysimonis.nl

I'm wearing a shirt by Club Med, jeans by 7 for all mankind, hat by Borsalino, sandals by Antica Sartoria and sunglasses by Ray Ban.

Chilcano cocktails

Following the popularity of the Peruvian cuisine, Pisco sour has become a famous cocktail. Another cocktail from Peru that is not as well known yet is Chilcano. Chilcano is made with pisco, ginger ale, a few drops of bitters and some ice cubes. And I have to admit... I like it even better than pisco sour, Peru's national drink.

The primary ingredient in chilcano is (just like in pisco sour), pisco, a brandy similar to italian grappa. But it's lighter, fresher. My first and best chilcano ever, was at restaurant Mayta in Lima and it was prepared by bartender Renzo Amaya. He has won several awards for making the best cocktails based on pisco.

To mix a chilcano, you can also use pisco infusions, called "macerados" (second photo), made with fruit, leaves or roots. I especially loved the ones made with mango, camu camu and goldenberry. Although it will never taste as good as in Peru, I tried to make chilcanos at home.... and they turned out pretty well if I may say so myself (last photo). Salud!

Read more about Mayta here:
http://tarasdolcevita.blogspot.nl/2015/04/restaurant-mayta-lima-peru.html

La Dolce Vita is... drinking an aperitivo in the mountains

La Dolce Vita is drinking an "aperitivo" in the mountains! Whether it's an Aperol Spritz, or an alcohol free San Bitter... it's pure bliss to me!
I'm curious, what does la Dolce Vita mean to you?

Photo taken in Val Venosta - Vinschgau, Italy.

Want to get more of that Dolce Vita feeling? Please continue here:
http://tarasdolcevita.blogspot.nl/2015/02/la-dolce-vita-is-boat-trip-to-blue.html

Florida has the best...

Today was officially the first day of spring, but it’s so terribly cold… To me it really feels like it’s still winter. In fact, I’m still wearing my winter coat and trying to eat as much fruit and vegetables as I can! Including grapefruit from Florida. Did you know that this particular type of grapefruit is sweeter than the others? And that characteristic makes it perfect for smoothies, cocktails and salads!

A little while ago I went to a workshop at the fabulous Markthal in Rotterdam (at De Wereld van Smaak), where a nutritionist, a chef and a mixologist taught me everything there is to know about grapefruit. Especially the Florida grapefuit. I didn’t know either, but it really has a totally different taste than other types & it contains vitamin C, vitamin A, potassium and dietary fiber… just what I need right now!

We made a mocktail (or virgin cocktail, if you like) with freshly squeezed grapefruit juice, tonic water, elderflower syrup, 3 slices of cucumber, a few mint leaves, some ice cubes and dried rose buds.... it was so delicious! And I did not miss the alcohol in the cocktail at all! The cherry on the cake was the goodiebag I got to take home... filled with lots of Florida grapefruits and even a blender, to make smoothies at home!

For more information please visit:
Florida Grapefruit http://www.floridacitrus.org/grapefruit 

Markthal Rotterdam http://markthalrotterdam.nl

De Wereld van Smaak http://www.dewereldvansmaak.nl

Photos without logo courtesy of Golin for Florida Department of Citrus.